This invention relates to an improved, small-sized snowmobile and more particularly to an improvement in a snowmobile of the type that has one relatively narrow steering ski at the front and one relatively narrow driving track at the rear.
It has been proposed to provide a snowmobile that is intended primarily for use by a single rider and which has its handling and traction improved by providing for pivotal movement between the body and the driving track about an axis that extends longitudinally of the snowmobile. Such an arrangement can improve handling by permitting the rider to lean into a turn without deteriorating the contact area between the driving track and the terrain over which it is travelling. Although the use of such a snowmobile wherein the body is pivotal relative to the driving track to allow leaning into a turn greatly improves the handling and permits the use of relatively narrow belts without adversely affecting trackability in varying conditions and handling, it raises another problem. That is, if the body of the snowmobile is pivotal relative to the driving belt, the snowmobile has a tendency to fall over when it is not in use. If an operator is not on the vehicle and it is left unattended, the body tends to pivot about its pivotal axis and can cause the snowmobile to fall over. Although the use of a kickstand as is employed with a motorcycle could be incorporated into a snowmobile for holding it in an upright condition under such conditions, conventional kickstands are not readily adaptable to snowmobiles because of the fact that they are parked on the snow. Normal motorcycle kickstands have a relatively small contact area and this is insufficient to support the full weight of a snowmobile on snow.
It is, therefore, a principal object of this invention to provide an improved snowmobile of the type wherein the body portion may lean relative to the driving track.
It is another object of this invention to provide an improved leaning type of snowmobile in which the maximum pivotal movement is restrained so as to improve stability both when operating and when leaving the vehicle unattended.
It is a further object of this invention to provide an improved parking support for a snowmobile of the leaning type.